Legal Support Market Overview - Amazon Web Services€¦ · LEGAL SUPPORT 2018 SALARY SURVEY LEGAL MARKET OVERVIEW After 4 years of consecutive decline in demand in for law firms,

CHARTERHOUSE PARTNERSHIP

LEGAL & LEGAL SUPPORT

2018 SALARY SURVEY

Level 10, 68 Harrington Street

Sydney NSW 2000

LEGAL SUPPORT 2018 SALARY SURVEY

LEGAL MARKET OVERVIEW After 4 years of consecutive decline in demand in for law firms, 2017 saw the legal market return to

positive, but minimal, growth. Growth was shown in 4 key metrics; (according to a report issued by

Thomson Reuters and The Melbourne Law School) demand, worked rates, fees worked and utilisation.

Although growth in these areas was no greater than 1%.

Lateral partner movement remained strong in 2017 across the top 50 firms in Australia and with that an

estimated $250 million worth of fees transitioned across the market. White and Case was the only global

firm to enter the Australian market in 2017 but there has been significant growth for the "Global

Boutiques” who enjoy the benefits of a global brand, extensive client and referral networks, and superior

support infrastructure.

Large domestic firms have continued with increased growth in Partner numbers, also not disrupted the

trend of law firm start-ups. The traditional formula for these boutique start-up firms has been to focus on

one particular work type, such as employment or corporate M&A.

2017 saw increased merger activity for new law firms, who continued to build on their position in the

Australian market as their leading firms continued with expansion.

Real Estate, M&A and general corporate work all showed significant growth in 2017, while Banking and

Finance work experienced a significant decrease in demand. Multi-Discipline Practices (MDPs) PWC,

KPMG, EY and Deloitte continued to increase the competition for work against the leading firms.

The Law Society Report in June 2017 indicated substantial growth in in-house legal teams though it

should be noted the ACC Australia & NZ indicated many in-house lawyers are undertaking non-legal

responsibilities. The ACC also indicated that in-house firms budgeted to spend around 9% on new law

firms in 2017.

The NSW Law Society reported that 2017 was the first year with more female, than male, legal

practitioners in Australia. Although the AFR reported that female partner numbers remained steady at

25%, the same number as 2016, women continued to take on leadership roles (CEO, Global Partner,

Regional Managing Partner and Chair) across a range of firms from large global, large nationals and

specialists. With female senior associate numbers growing, many firms are looking to examine their

internal policies and past behaviours in order to address the cultural, societal and workplace barriers

that prevent women from reaching the highest levels of the profession and what can be done to

progress them.

Many firms continued to invest heavily in legal project management training and tools to meet their

client’s demands for more accurate price estimation and resource planning. With top-tiers hiring

specialist legal project managers, data scientists, paralegals and change consultants, some teams have

over 70 staff and this no doubt will be a trend seen in more and more firms. Also noted was the demand

for off-shore legal process operations (LPO's) decreasing, due to the falling Australia dollar and an

increase of competition from on-shore operators.

The majority of firms continued to make more than healthy profits in 2017, despite a continuing flat

market.

EMERGING TRENDS 2018 The gentle growth experienced in 2017 is expected to continue throughout 2018. With HWLE and

Tresscox having already merged and Dibbs Barker closing - all announced within the first quarter of the

year - strategic growth will no doubt continue to occur throughout the year, as firms look to strengthen

their position in the market.

With the emergence of new legal technologies, Stanford Law School’s LegalTech Index now lists 721

companies across the globe developing and selling technology for the legal market, many of these

solutions have found their way into the Australian legal market. Firms must now decide whether they will

lead or remain a traditionalist in this space. Numerous larger firms in Australia have already started to

employ dedicated legal technology development teams; that combine legal, legal project

management, data analytics, and IT skills, hoping to benefit sooner than their competitors who choose

to take a late technology adopter stance.

RECRUITMENT 2018

There remains a shortage of experienced legal candidates across the industry and whilst there has

been significant talk from the Prime Minster and the head of NSW Law Society about the amount of

legal graduates that are qualified each year, there had been limited discussions about those leaving

the industry, within their first 3 years of practice.

In particular, the demand remains strong for both Banking and Finance and Building Construction

lawyers with an abundance of opportunities for both in in-house and private practice. Corporate

experts continue to be in demand, along with senior employment/workplace relations lawyers.

Due to the wealth of work in insurance, there continues to be high volume of opportunities across the

various areas, in particular at the 3 to 7 PQE level. Although with the changes to the Motor Accident

Injuries Act to take effect, many are looking to diversify their Insurance experience.

INTERNATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES

Many Australian Lawyers remain keen to experience working overseas, with the Middle East, UK and

Asia remaining the popular choices. In particular, there is increased interest in Singapore and Hong

Kong, with their lower tax rates. With a continuing demand in several areas including Financial Services

and lawyers with project finance experience, there is a wide range of opportunities for various levels

and even junior lawyers are able to enter specialised teams without having had specific experience.

Language skills remain an advantage in Hong Kong and China but are no longer a prerequisite to

practice and the ability to earn higher salaries and be given more responsibility remains appealing to

many.

With increased global firm presence in Australia it is expected that 2018 will see another large number

of overseas secondments. This allows firms to retain their talent, their lawyers to have the overseas

experience they are looking for, but give both some security of a career path on their return.

RECRUITMENT 2018 | PRIVATE PRACTICE LAWYERS

BENEFITS AND RETENTION

The results from the Charterhouses 2018

salary survey, showed a continued pattern of

legal employee’s looking for more in terms of

a benefits package, from their employers.

Paid parental scheme’s, flexible working

hours and health and wellbeing benefits

continue to top this list. This is in line with a

global trend that is seeing employees’

choosing strong benefits packages over pay

rises.

The Harvard Business Review found in 2017

that employees place the highest value on

benefits that are relatively low-cost to

employers, such as flexible hours, more paid

vacation time, and work-from-home

opportunities.

Australia is yet to see the demand for paid

student loan (HECS) or tuition assistance, that

is occurring as an employee benefit in the US

and UK but with global firms in the market, it

is a benefit we expect to see become more

common in the coming years.

SALARIES

SYDNEY

Top Tier and International firms

1 year PQE $79,000 - $111,000

2 year PQE $86,000 - $117,000

3 year PQE $92,000 - $127,000

4 year PQE $98,000 - $142,000

5 year PQE $116,000 - $167,000

Senior Associate 1 year $142,000 – $187,000

Senior Associate 2 year $150,000 - $221,000



Special Counsel $200,000 - $345,000

*Salaries include base salary and superannuation only

SYDNEY

Mid-tier Firms

1 year PQE $70,000 - $85,000

2 year PQE $81,000 - $102,000

3 year PQE $92,000 - $112,000

4 year PQE $96,000 - $130,000

5 year PQE $105,000 - $151,000







SYDNEY

Boutique/Specialist

1 year PQE $57,000 - $79,000

2 year PQE $68,000 – $92,000

3 year PQE $74,000 - $100,000

4 year PQE $82,000 - $120,000

5 year PQE $94,000 - $140,000







MELBOURNE

Top Tier and International firms

1 year PQE $72,000 - $100,000

2 year PQE $79,000 - $110,000

3 year PQE $82,000 - $122,000

4 year PQE $92,000 - $138,000

5 year PQE $100,000 - $142,000







Melbourne

Mid-tier Firms

1 year PQE $67,000 - $82,000

2 year PQE $69,000 - $100,000

3 year PQE $80,000 - $107,000

4 year PQE $83,000 - $118,000

5 year PQE $93,000 - $138,000







Melbourne

Boutique/Specialist

1 year PQE $50,000 - $75,000

2 year PQE $57,000 - $88,000

3 year PQE $60,000 - $92,000

4 year PQE $63,000 – $108,000

5 year PQE $77,000 - $124,000







QLD | BRISBANE

1 year PQE $68,000 - $81,000

2 year PQE $70,00 - $96,000

3 year PQE $81,000 - $107,000

4 year PQE $92,000 - $124,000

5 year PQE $99,000 - $ $148,000


SA | ADELAIDE

1 year PQE $55,000 - $70,000

2 year PQE $62,000 - $80,000

3 year PQE $67,000 - $88,000

4 year PQE $77,000 - $122,000

5 year PQE $83,000 - $133,000


WA | PERTH

1 year PQE $71,000 - $88,000

2 year PQE $82,000 - $97,000

3 year PQE $87,000 - $108,000

4 year PQE $92,000 - $145,000

5 year PQE $105,000 - $155,000


CHARTERHOUSE

Legal Support Market Overview Legal Support 2018 Salary Survey

LEGAL SUPPORT MARKET OVERVIEW

In line with previous years, salary banding will dictate remuneration levels in each of the firms surveyed.

Some firms have re-defined their banding for the intermediate level, which continues to be the most

highly demanded band for support staff. As technology continues to advance and junior lawyers are

increasingly self-sufficient, support ratios for the intermediate band are also expanding, along with ratios

at the senior band in some firms. To support secretarial staff with these growing ratios, firms have invested

more in their in-house technology training and Learning & Development programs.

Intermediate level secretaries continue to be the band in the highest level of demand. Candidates at

this level are generally spoilt for choice when seeking new employment, so we would advise any firms

looking to recruit intermediate legal secretaries that speed is a major factor for a successfully recruitment

process. The demand at this level is market wide, however over the last year we have seen spikes in the

following practice areas; Insurance (Plaintiff and Defendant), Environment & Planning, Commercial

Litigation, Property, Construction and Corporate.

Over the last year firms have been much more open-minded to hiring candidates from markets outside

of law. The firms that have considered these ‘non-traditional’ support staff have generally looked to

administrators with industry specific experience to the practice or from other professional services

bodies.

The majority of the firms surveyed will either see their secretarial bands remain the same as they were

the previous year or increase slightly based on Consumer Price Index (CPI), most commonly at 2.5%. The

exception to this across firms surveyed will be performance-based bonuses. These bonus payments are

either calculated on individual performance or a combination of both individual performance and

team performance verse budget.

SALARY DATA

Over the past year we have seen bandings level out across the majority of the tiers. Whilst Boutique firms

have raised salaries in the support market to compete with Mid-Tier and Top-Tier firms, the variances in

salary banding has generally been with some of the new International firms to the Australian market as

they try to attract talent from more established local brands; or from Mid-Tier firms that have established

new offices (predominantly post-merger).

DEFINITIONS

Boutique Firms: We categorise Boutique firms by the number of practice areas they offer to clients and

the total staff headcount within a firm. This category can sometimes include specialist firms, though the

key characteristic for this band is still related to headcount.

Mid-Tier Firms: The Australian Mid-Tier is the broadest in the banding, and the most rapidly changing in

the current climate. Over the past year we have seen a lot of staff movement in the mid-tier, primarily

due to mergers; which will continue into 2018.

Top-Tier Firms: For the purpose of this survey we are using the classic definition of an Australian Top-Tier

firm. They are the largest six firms in Australia based on total headcount and revenue.

International Firms: The number of International firms joining the Australian market has slowed in 2018.

Although there have been global mergers in the Top-Tier and Mid-Tier, for the purpose of this survey we

are referencing internationally headquartered firms with a smaller Australian presence.

SYDNEY

Junior Legal Secretary (0 - 2 years) $42,000 - $50,000

Intermediate Legal Secretary (2 - 4 years) $50,000 - $65,000

Senior Legal Secretary (5 years +) $70,000 - $82,000

EA to Managing Partner / EA to General Counsel $80,000 - $90,000

WP Operator $70,000 - $80,000

Discovery Paralegal $55,000 - $70,000

Paralegal (Practice Specific) $65,000 - $90,000

Conveyancer $85,000 - $120,000

Practice Manager $90,000 - $130,000

Office Assistant (0 - 1 year) $40,000 - $43,000

Mail Room / Shared Services Assistant $40,000 - $50,000

Legal Receptionist $55,000 - $70,000


MELBOURNE

Junior Legal Secretary (0 - 2 years) $45,000 - $55,000

Intermediate Legal Secretary (2 - 4 years) $55,000 - $65,000

Senior Legal Secretary (5 years +) $65,000 - $75,000

EA to Managing Partner / General Counsel $75,000 - $85,000

WP Operator $70,000 - $75,000

Discovery Paralegal $55,000 - $70,000

Paralegal (Practice Specific) $60,000 - $80,000

Conveyancer $70,000 - $100,000

Practice Manager $90,000 - $120,000

Office Assistant (0 - 1 year) $40,000 - $42,000

Mail Room / Shared Services Assistant $40,000 - $50,000

Legal Receptionist $50,000 - $65,000


NON-MONETARY DRIVERS

Firms are increasing using non-monetary

benefits to positively influence prospective

legal support staff to accept employment

offers.

The key motivator for legal support staff to

either stay in their role or find a new role is

cultural fit, both the firm in general and their

existing or prospective team.

The other key movement drivers include team-

based Health & Wellbeing initiatives such as

Yoga, Pilates, Group Personal Training Sessions

and Team Sports such as Soccer, Touch

Football and Netball. Some of the other Health

& Wellbeing initiatives provided to legal

support staff include discounted Health

Insurance, free breakfast and fruit at work, Flu

Vaccinations and Health Checks.

Due to the nature of the work in legal support

roles, flexible working arrangements can

sometimes be a challenge for firms to

accommodate, however this continues to be

a strong retention/attraction motivator for staff

when considering opportunities. Over the past

year we have seen an increase in firms either

tweaking core hours to accommodate

support staff, or offering job share solutions to

retain high performers.

Learning & Development and Technology

within the legal industry are other major drivers

in staff movement for 2018. Over the last year

we have seen increased retention within the

firms who have invested in technology and

training, especially in the growing Mid-Tier

firms.

ABOUT THIS DOCUMENT

This document was created by Sommer Bath, National Director Legal and David Drew, Manager - Legal

Support, in consultation with Lauren Miller, Operations & Insight Manager. The data used to create this

document was sourced from a combination of the following sources:

• Charterhouse Partnership 2018 Legal Professional and Legal Support Client Survey

• Charterhouse Partnership 2018 Legal Professional and Legal Support Candidate Survey

• Salary data recorded from placements made since the 2017 review period

• The Law Societies of NSW and Victoria

• Client and market knowledge of Charterhouse Legal consultants

• Articles - Thomson Reuters, Forbes, Legal 500 and the Diversity Council of Australia

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Charterhouse Legal team specialise in the recruitment of Legal Professional and Legal Support,

Shared services staffing solutions for Private Practice law firms and In-house Legal teams.

If you would like to discuss any of the information outlined in this document, please contact Sommer

Bath [email protected] or 02 96412416

mailto:[email protected]

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Legal Support Market Overview - Amazon Web Services€¦ · LEGAL SUPPORT 2018 SALARY SURVEY LEGAL MARKET OVERVIEW After 4 years of consecutive decline in demand in for law firms,